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06:11
Culturing Primary Rat Inner Medullary Collecting Duct Cells
Published on: June 21, 2013
Characterization of the central cell groups regulating the kidney in the rat
1Department of Anatomy and Physiology, College of Anatomy and Physiology, Kansas State University, 1600 Denison Ave - VMS 105, 66506-5602, Manhattan, KS, USA.
Brain Research
|October 26, 1999
Summary
This study used viral tracing to map kidney-projecting neurons in rats, finding diverse neurotransmitter types in the spinal cord and brainstem. These findings reveal complex neural regulation of sympathetic kidney outflow.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Autonomic Nervous System Research
- Visceral Afferent Signaling
Background:
- Understanding the neural pathways controlling kidney function is crucial for managing cardiovascular and renal diseases.
- The sympathetic nervous system plays a key role in regulating renal hemodynamics and function.
- Previous research has identified some central nervous system (CNS) targets involved in sympathetic outflow, but a comprehensive map to the kidney is lacking.
Purpose of the Study:
- To identify the specific types of neurons in the rat spinal cord and brain that project to the kidney.
- To characterize the neurotransmitters expressed by these kidney-innervating neurons.
- To elucidate the central neural circuitry regulating sympathetic outflow to the kidney.
Main Methods:
- Retrograde, transneuronal viral tracing using Pseudorabies virus (PRV) injected into the left kidney of rats.
- Immunohistochemistry to detect PRV-infected neurons and identify their neurotransmitter content (serotonin, substance P, tyrosine hydroxylase, PNMT, vasopressin, oxytocin).
- Localization of infected neurons in the spinal cord (intermediolateral cell column) and various brainstem and hypothalamic nuclei.
Main Results:
- PRV-infected neurons projecting to the kidney were identified in the spinal cord's intermediolateral cell column.
- In the brainstem, infected neurons were found in medullary raphe nuclei, ventromedial medulla (VMM), rostral ventrolateral medulla (RVLM), and the A5 cell group.
- Hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus (PVH) neurons, including vasopressin (VP) and oxytocin (OT) expressing cells, were also infected. Serotonin (5-HT) and substance P (SP) neurons in the medulla, and phenylethanolamine-N-methyltransferase (PNMT) neurons in the VMM and RVLM, were among the identified types.
Conclusions:
- Sympathetic outflow to the kidney is regulated by a diverse population of neurons originating in the spinal cord and brainstem.
- The identified bulbospinal pathways regulating sympathetic kidney outflow share similarities with those controlling other visceral organs like the adrenal glands and heart.
- This study provides a detailed map of the central neural control of renal sympathetic activity, highlighting the complexity of autonomic regulation.
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